What is the future of "Company" and "Success"?
The meaning of "success" is itself undergoing radical reassessment and redefinition. Those charged with moving their businesses forward are confronting unprecedented challenges in shaping strategic plans for their corporate and competitive future.
Leaders, both in executive development and in business operations, suggest that a healthy inner life-- for oneself as well as one's employees-- is as critical to a company's survival as a profitable marketplace.
Some think that Technology will be the force to change organizations... that since one person can do the work of many and do it better due to applications, web, and databases, businesses only need true human resources to be successful.
Is it possible that in future organizations, effective and progressive change in corporate culture will encourage the tasks of creating, sharing, disseminating and improving corporate knowledge? Could corporate blogs, knowledge management’s systems based in collaborative technologies, and 3rd generation social networks be the ultimate change agents?
Some see where we work - whether it be in offices, web communities, at home, or in a virutal network - will change the face of organizations and the term "success" will be determined by each of those venues.
And some also think we are doomed to re-invent the wheel time and time again... nothing really changes.
Taking this and your own ideas - what is the next phase of business? And what will we do to meet it head-on?
3 comments:
I find it interesting to consider the role of technology in the success of future leaders. Certainly tecnology will continue to play an integral role in facilitating interaction and accelerating the conversion of raw data into usable information and ultimately knowledge. However I believe that this will be its primary role.
Leaders are by nature relational. It is the interaction of leader and team that facilitates success. So for me the question becomes in an ever increasingly technological world how do we maintain the organic face to face contact that human beings crave and need beyond most other things.
I love how Starbucks positions itself as our third place after home and work. They are positioning to be the place where the technologically advanced yet increasingly isolated class of knowledge worker can interact with other professionals.
Ron
Globalization, the energy crisis, a weakening US economy, a protracted attack on society being waged from within as human values devolve, the rising tide of agnostics and atheists among our youth, a migration of media as well as the velocity of information (and misinformation), the decline of the written language, the ascent of the short-form video, the fluid transformation of technology, and the emergence of at least two generations that are ill-prepared for the responsibilities of leadership (lacking the desire to be perceived as a leader)are societal, demographic and psychographic factors that will not only drive the wholesale redefinition of what a "company" is, but will challenge the value (as yet undefined) of "success".
These matters go well beyond what a corporate organization can do to impact the direction of society. Brand messages used to shape society. Now the brands that survive are shaped by society. In the future, society will create, embrace and discard the brand, the message and the product.
The future is moving through corporate America at a modest but ever-accelerating pace.
We are fluid, but our ability to adapt and change will be tested in new ways that right now we can only speculate about.
Confuscious said "May you live in interesting times." Be careful what you ask for...
Starbucks, MacDonalds, Scion, The Gap... These brands will be remade not by an advertising agency, but by the turnover of values, mores, desire, economic viability and individual whims of what comes after all the Baby Boomers have been wheeled out of the workplace.
It is an interesting intellectual discussion to have with yourself, but even more so if you have it with a 19 year-old... What you hear (if you listen) will rock your roots.
Good thoughts here, Kate, as well as in the comments submitted by Ron and Rick. Let me add a couple more...
First, "success"; to me, the absolute key ingredient for success, whether at the organizational level (company) or individual level, is the strong desire for continuous improvement. Companies and individuals must refresh their skills, their services, and their technology. Complacency is death. There will always be someone younger, faster and hungrier that wants to displace who ever is at the top. So regardless of the place of work, the desire to improve will go a long way toward success.
Second, Ron's comments on technology and leaders. I agree that leaders are inherently relational. However, my feeling is that technology will facilitate leadership development as leaders seek out others for new information and techniques that can be applied in their settings. A prime expample is this blog. We are attracted to the Group, read the blogs and comments and incorporate what we need into our leadership practice.
Finally, Rick's comments on "living in interesting times." I don't think the Baby Boomers (of which I'm one) and our offspring are all that far off in terms of values and goals relative to the workplace. My 21 year old, who is ready to launch his career, is very much in tune with many of my Boomer clients, seeking the next the next phase in their careers; both want "self-actualization," to have a positive impact on their organization and to be recognized for their efforts.
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